Adult Basic Education

In 2014, the Oklahoma State Legislature voted to move the Adult Education-Lifelong Learning grant from the State Department of Education to the Oklahoma Department of Career and Technology Education. The Lifelong Learning Section of the Oklahoma State Department of Education had been providing basic skill instruction for educationally disadvantaged adults since the late 1960s. On July 1, 2014, CareerTech picked up the baton to provide these services across the state. Adult Education is funded through the Workforce Investment Act. In Oklahoma, 19 percent of the adults over the age of 25 have not finished high school. In human terms, this statistic means a workforce unprepared for the sophisticated demands of the workplace. It also may mean that future generations will not place a high value on finishing their education. As adult educators, our mission is to ensure that these Oklahomans have the opportunity to be fully participating workers, parents and citizens in our state. Adult education and literacy is an investment in our people.